US 6,267,619 B1Granted

Card connector having means for detecting insertion of a card

AssigneeAlps Electric Co., Ltd.

InventorToru Nishioka

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Abstract

An IC card connector achieves a stable loaded state of an IC card, and excellent operation reliability. The IC card connector includes a card detecting device that has a fixed terminal and a movable terminal and that detects the insertion of a card by moving the movable terminal in response to the insertion of the card so as to switch a switch between the fixed terminal and the movable terminal. Resilient force of the movable terminal produced by the insertion of the card does not act in the ejecting direction of the card.

Claims6

Dependent claims

A card connector comprising:

a housing having an opening on an upper side to receive a card from a side face;
a cover covering said opening on said upper side of said housing;
card detecting means disposed in said housing and having a fixed terminal and a movable terminal for detecting an insertion of said card into said housing by moving said movable terminal in response to said insertion of said card to actuate a switch comprising said fixed terminal and said movable terminal;
wherein said fixed terminal is elastic and is supported in an inner part of said housing as a cantilever extending along a surface of said card that is orthogonal to an inserting direction of said card, said fixed terminal having a leading end portion;
wherein said cover has a projection configured to press a free end of said fixed terminal in a downward direction such that said fixed terminal is stationary and forms a normally closed switch with said movable terminal;
wherein said movable terminal is supported in said inner part of said housing as a second cantilever extending along a surface of said card that is orthogonal to said inserting direction of said card and is positioned to a side of said fixed terminal, said movable terminal having a protuberant actuator portion having a pressing face inclined to said card inserting direction and said movable terminal being elastically deformable in vertical directions and having a contact portion at a leading end, said contact portion being movable in said vertical directions into a contact with and away from said leading end portion of said fixed terminal;
wherein said movable terminal is configured to move in said card inserting direction while being elastically deformed when said pressing face is in contact with a leading end portion of said card causing said contact portion of said movable terminal to make contact with said projection of said cover, said projection of said cover being configured to limit movement in said card inserting direction of said movable terminal;
and
wherein said protuberant actuator portion has a top portion configured to press said contact portion away from said leading end portion when said leading end of said card contacts said top portion of said protuberant actuator.

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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

A card connector comprising:

a housing having an opening on an upper side to receive a card from a side face;
a cover covering said opening on said upper side of said housing;
card detecting means disposed in said housing and having a fixed terminal and a movable terminal for detecting an insertion of said card into said housing by moving said movable terminal in response to said insertion of said card to actuate a switch comprising said fixed terminal and said movable terminal;
wherein said fixed terminal is elastic and is supported in an inner part of said housing as a cantilever extending along a surface of said card that is orthogonal to an inserting direction of said card, said fixed terminal having a leading end portion;
wherein said cover has a projection configured to press a free end of said fixed terminal in a downward direction such that said fixed terminal is stationary and forms a normally closed switch with said movable terminal;
wherein said movable terminal is supported in said inner part of said housing as a second cantilever extending along a surface of said card that is orthogonal to said inserting direction of said card and is positioned to a side of said fixed terminal, said movable terminal having a protuberant actuator portion having a pressing face inclined to said card inserting direction and said movable terminal being elastically deformable in vertical directions and having a contact portion at a leading end, said contact portion being movable in said vertical directions into a contact with and away from said leading end portion of said fixed terminal;
wherein said movable terminal is configured to move in said card inserting direction while being elastically deformed when said pressing face is in contact with a leading end portion of said card causing said contact portion of said movable terminal to make contact with said projection of said cover, said projection of said cover being configured to limit movement in said card inserting direction of said movable terminal;
and
wherein said protuberant actuator portion has a top portion configured to press said contact portion away from said leading end portion when said leading end of said card contacts said top portion of said protuberant actuator.

6 more elements